Sanchez, as the side's talisman, received plenty of criticism, with former Under-20 coach Jose Sulantay labeling him “fatter than normal” and “physically out of shape.”

Arsene Wenger has leaped to the defense of his star attacker by pointing to statistics to rubbish those claims.

Wenger said: “Yes, I spoke to him. He is focused, he told us he is focused on the Premier Leagueand Europa League. On top of that he had a bad result with Chile against Bolivia, but he came back full of desire and ready to play.

“He was not completely physically ready to play three games in a week - and for Chile he was not completely ready.

“He is not fat. His fat percentage is under 10. You know how it is, when you do not win, people will find problems.”

While speaking to ‘Match of the Day’ reporters, Wenger revealed the conversation he had with the unsettled striker “He is very focused. "He told me he's focused to win the Premier League and Europa League and ready to have a go."